Beach teams take on rematches in Fort Lauderdale

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The United States has two men’s teams advancing to Saturday’s FIVB Fort Lauderdale Major semifinals and a pair of women’s teams are en route to the quarterfinals.

A rematch from the 2016 Olympic Games presented itself in the men’s quarterfinals, with Phil Dalhausser and Nick Lucena dispatching Alison Cerutti/Bruno Schmidt 13-21, 21-17, 15-10.

“I would love to switch places and let them win here and us win in Rio,” Dalhausser said after the match. “It was nice to win this one.”

Emotion from Dalhausser showed throughout the third set, a combination of “a little frustration from Rio and the crowd was great behind us. It was a big match for us to make the semifinals here,” Dalhausser added.

The victory made it the second time in a span of one week that the Americans beat the Brazilians. Dalhausser/Lucena topped Alison/Bruno on Feb. 5 in an exhibition match in Rio de Janeiro.

Another Olympic rematch will happen for USA vs Brazil; Kerri Walsh Jennings and April Ross will go toe-to-toe against Agatha Bednarczuk, who they fell to in the Olympic semifinals. Agatha is partnered with Eduarda Lisboa now, offering Ross and Walsh Jennings an opportunity to capitalize on during Saturday’s quarterfinal.

Walsh Jennings and Ross swept Russia’s Ekaterina Birlova/Nadezda Makroguzova 21-18, 21-14 in their only match on Friday, in the second round.

Friday’s highlights
John Hyden and Ryan Doherty continue to stun and battle through the men’s bracket. Hyden picked up Doherty as a teammate for this tournament, after his regular partner Tri Bourne had to withdraw over the weekend. The story line continues to come up because Hyden/Doherty have done the improbable and reached the semifinals. “They don’t have tape on me and Ryan,” Hyden said. “We’re doing what we can. We’re both good players trying to put it together and it’s meshing well right now.”

Hyden and Doherty rallied to outlast Olympic silver medalists Paolo Nicolai/Daniele Lupo of Italy, 12-21, 21-19, 15-11. Prior to their quarterfinal win, the pair beat Russia also in three sets. They’ve played four consecutive three-set matches.

USA’s fourth team to continue play into the weekend is Brooke Sweat/Summer Ross. Sweat and Ross won their pool 3-0 and swept their second round match against Russia, 21-13, 21-18. They will play 23rd-ranked Czech Republic in the quarterfinals. The duo have been assisted by a schedule that allowed for maximum rest and recovery between matches, playing two matches their first day, followed by just one match the past two days.

3x Olympic champion @MistyMayTreanor is here at the #FTLMajor! pic.twitter.com/edqV1OGdYz

— Beach Volleyball (@FIVBBeach) February 10, 2017

Records as of Feb. 10
Dalhausser/Lucena advance to semifinals vs BRA Evandro/Andre
Hyden/Doherty advance to semifinals vs BRA Alvaro/Saymon
Ross/Walsh Jennings advance to quarterfinals vs BRA Agatha/Duda
Sweat/S. Ross advance to quarterfinals vs CZE Kolocova/Kvapilova
Tied for fifth: Gibb/Taylor Crabb
Tied for ninth: Fendrick/Hughes, Hochevar/Day; Brunner/Patterson
Tied for 17th: Claes/Reeves; Rosenthal/Trevor Crabb
Tied for 25th: Carico/Pollock

*Ryan Doherty will play in place of Tri Bourne for this event

Four wins in a row for @BaSweat and @summernoelross at #FTLMajor! pic.twitter.com/ehmu2QXGfC

— Beach Volleyball (@FIVBBeach) February 11, 2017